


Hiking Through Germany

by FantabulousAss



Series: Reconnecting [3]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alfred dealing with his problems, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Germany is briefly fatphobic, Hiking, M/M, Weight Gain, Weight Issues, fatphobia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-16
Updated: 2020-12-16
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:53:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28118763
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FantabulousAss/pseuds/FantabulousAss
Summary: Alfred is sent to the most strict nation he knows to help him lose weight. That's not at all his intention, though, so they go hiking instead. Alfred doesn't hate Europe, but he hates how Europe makes him feel.
Relationships: America/Germany (Hetalia), America/Russia (Hetalia)
Series: Reconnecting [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2053482
Comments: 2
Kudos: 27





	Hiking Through Germany

A few weeks after he’d gotten back from Russia, he’d gotten an email from his boss, saying he was being sent to Germany in the summer.

Alfred had laughed. His boss hated Germany’s boss, it had to be killing him that Germany was the next choice for sending his “wayward nation” to fat camp.

He liked Ludwig. He was serious, sure, but he shared Alfred’s love of hiking. Alfred hadn’t been hiking in Europe for years, not since he’d gotten too busy for long trips in the 80’s.

It would be fun! Shit talking leaders, mostly Alfred’s, hiking through the Black Forest hopefully, but anywhere would be good. Plus, Ludwig wasn’t a big fan of Ivan lately either, so they should be able to get through this without much talk about the big guy. Hopefully.

`~`

Ludwig had been… shocked… to say the least, when Alfred had shown up at his house. He’d known he was coming, of course, but he hadn’t expected Alfred to be as… plump as he presently was.

Of course, the young nation had been plumping up for years, getting even chubbier when he and Russia had been together. Alfred had always stress eaten, that was no secret, no matter how hard he had tried to keep it one, but this was… well. He understood his boss’s concern, though he knew Alfred was stubborn and if he had already decided not to do anything about his weight, which it seemed like he had, as he’d only added to his weight while at Kiku’s, then that was his own issue.

Alfred greeted him warmly though, with a bright white smile and a hug that Ludwig had been startled by but eased into as soon as he fully realized what was happening. “I know it’s been a while since we’ve spoken, Ludwig, and I’m awful sorry about that.”

“Do not worry, Alfred, the world is a little…” He motioned his hand back and forth. “Weird at the moment.”

Alfred smiled and nodded in agreement and Ludwig was happy to see it. “Well, I’m assuming you know why I’m here, right?”

Ludwig sputtered, unsure of how to answer his question politely. It was an incredibly sensitive matter, especially if Alfred’s previous years were any indication. Alfred seemed to realize his discomfort and laughed, not unkindly, at him. “Hey, Lud… it’s alright. I’m… my boss didn’t spare my feelings, don’t feel like you have to. I know I’ve put on weight.” He patted his round belly for emphasis. “That’s why I got sent up here, no reason to be shy about it.”

Ludwig looked confused, which made Alfred laugh again. “It really has been a while, hasn’t it?” Ludwig mumbled, not sure where this Alfred had sprouted from.

“I’m older now, wiser.” He teased, “Weight isn’t a big thing anymore.”

Internally, Alfred hated explaining it. Ludwig hadn’t asked him to, but he’d felt the need to when he’d seen how shocked he’d been. It had stung more than he’d thought it would, and he used humor to deflect that pain as much as he could.

“Okay… well. What are your plans? Were you sent with a diet plan or do we have to figure that out ourselves?” Ludwig hoped it was the former. He didn’t mind helping Alfred come up with a plan, but it was more work than he wanted to put into it. He didn’t want to hear Alfred whine about the food or the exercise.

“So… um… I don’t have any plans. I don’t appreciate my boss sending me here to dump weight. I don’t appreciate him using his political ties for something so ridiculous and I really don’t appreciate him toting me all over the world just so I don’t embarrass him by being a fatass. I do appreciate your help, but I don’t plan on losing weight for a while.” He shrugged with one shoulder. “I assume you know about Russia and I?” His eyes darted towards the ground.

Ludwig nodded. “I apologize, I know the two of you were close.”

“Yeah, well, he fucked up and I fucked up, so now my boss is trying to make that  _ your _ problem.” He bit the side of his tongue and shook his head, looking back up at Ludwig with a small, wry smile. “It’s been a tough few months, because of Russia and because of just normal political bullshit. I’m not putting the pressure on myself to lose weight just so my dickhead boss isn’t embarrassed of me.”

Ludwig swallowed hard, not looking forward to that email and probably a strongly worded meeting that he would have to explain in the future. “So… what was the plan?”

“I… I kinda just wanted to go hiking. I haven’t been hiking in Europe in years, like, a whole lotta years, and… I mean, if you don’t want to, and you just want to, I don’t know, hang out here and get work done, that would be totally cool and completely understandable, but… that’s what my plan was.” Ludwig noticed that Alfred seemed… a little ashamed of his desires. He couldn’t figure out why Alfred wouldn’t want to lose weight, if for nothing else than to get his boss off his back, but no matter. It had been a while since he had gone hiking either.

“Well, Alfred, that sounds like a marvelous idea. It’s been a long time since I’ve hiked as well.” He shared a warm smile with Alfred and then straightened up, face growing serious yet again. “So. Where would you like to go hiking?”

`~`

While on the trail, Alfred poked and prodded his stomach, noticing not for the first time this trip, that his belly was getting softer and his pants were getting tighter. They’d been doing that a lot in general, over the past few months, but now it was particularly annoying as there was no logical reason for it. “Hey, Lud, d’ya mind if I duck into a store and pick up some shorts or something?”

Ludwig shook his head and waved the American off. “Of course not. I’ll google the next destination within walking distance.” He didn’t know why Alfred hadn’t thought to bring shorts if his plan from the beginning had been to hike all over the German mountains, but that was neither here nor there.

Al nodded and walked into a store that was advertising a small array of clothes. He’d have to make it quick, since he didn’t want to irritate his hiking partner. He kept up, that wasn’t the issue. He didn’t take many breaks, he breathed a little louder, but that was to be expected, wasn’t it?

_ Don’t get me wrong! _ He thought as he thumbed through the pants on the rack, doing the conversions in his head,  _ I love hanging out with the guy, and this is tons of fun… I just don’t get why I’m getting  _ **_fatter_ ** _! _

They were walking long distances, hiking for  _ fun _ and biking distances that were too long to walk. He just didn’t understand how he could be packing on more weight. It wasn’t like he was ordering in secret, like he had in Japan.

As he neared the end of the rack, he forced those thoughts from his mind. It didn’t matter. He was here to get shorts and get out. That was all.

_ Wait. Fuck… There’s no way!  _ But there was. He’d reached the end of the rack, end of the men’s section period, and hadn’t found a single pair of shorts, or even pants that would have even fit him two sizes ago.  _ Ha… guess there’s really no place like home, huh? _

He walked out of the store with a bruised ego, putting a fake grin on for Ludwig and nudged his friend with his elbow. “Ready to go?”

Ludwig glanced down, expecting to see shorts on his friend, but instead just seeing the same pants. “Didn’t you get shorts?” He asked.

Then, he realized. Alfred was flushed, and looked embarrassed, glancing around like he was worried someone would hear. “They didn’t have your size?”

“Ha… yeah, y’all are pretty small up here.”  _ Or you’re just really big _ .

“Ah…  _ ja,  _ I suppose… would you like to try and find a different store? I’m sure there’s one around-,”

“Nah, dude, I’m fine, let’s just get outta here.” This trip wasn’t  _ supposed _ to be about losing weight, that wasn’t a goal he’d intended on setting, as he’d told Ludwig, but he also hadn’t planned on gaining any weight.

Truth be told, he  _ hated _ shopping in Europe, even for food. He felt acutely out of place, no matter what country, and this was no different. In fact, this was almost worse. Ludwig was  _ toned _ , practically chiseled from marble, and here  _ he _ was. Chunky. Lumpy. Flabby.  _ Soft _ . Ludwig had to be seen with him, out in public.

When he’d been with Ivan, he’d at least been comforted by the fact that Ivan wasn’t quite as svelte as he pretended he was under the coat, and that he could hardly keep his hands off Alfred, even in public. Plus, Ivan had always been taller than him, and peoples’ eyes were drawn to him first.

“Alfred, you cannot walk around in clothes that are too small. Isn’t it uncomfortable?” Though Ludwig’s expression was compassionate, brows softly furrowed and mouth set in a gentle frown, Alfred still felt  _ shame _ throb through him, burning his cheeks and shoulders. Maybe he  _ should _ accept Ludwig’s help in losing weight. Maybe it was a good idea his boss had sent him here, to the strictest country he could think of, to lose weight.

“Not so loud? Please?” He almost wished Lud would be a dick about it, and say no more fun food, so they could fight, Alfred could make jokes about himself, and it’d be  _ funny _ and lighten the whole situation up, but no, he was being  _ nice _ and  _ thoughtful _ … fuck. “I’m sure. Let’s just get outta here, I’ll look in the next town over, and if they don’t have anything, tough. I can handle it, dude, don’t worry.”

Ludwig, though hesitant, nodded. Alfred was stubborn, and arguing with him would do no good. “Okay. Sure.”

While they walked, they still talked, though Alfred was definitely leading the conversation, chattering up a storm, flitting from subject to subject, waving his arms with the drama of it all, in the same way the Italies did, making Ludwig chuckle just a little.

Alfred continued to chatter until they got to the restaurant, and Ludwig led them to their table. “You sure we just… sit down?”

He nodded and sat easily into the booth. Alfred stood a moment, before Ludwig could put two and two together… Alfred was too large to fit.

Shame again burned Alfred’s cheeks as he sighed and mumbled, “Could we… maybe sit at a table?”

Ludwig jumped up and tripped over his own feet in his haste to get to a table. “Of course! I’m so sorry, Alfred, I wasn’t thinking!”

Alfred smiled again, hoping the expression wasn’t as disappointed as he felt. “You’re  _ fine _ , Lud… places over here just… aren’t built for, uh… sturdier folk.”  _ God he must be so embarrassed. _

They ordered their food, Ludwig recommending what Alfred should get, and Alfred listening, the same way he had been this whole trip. When it came, though, he just… picked at it.

It wasn’t that it wasn’t  _ good _ , it was fucking  _ amazing _ ,  _ smelled _ amazing, and it wasn’t like Alfred wasn’t hungry, he was always hungry, he just… felt out of place, embarrassed, like he took up too much space, and didn’t deserve to be here with the awesome dude in front of him, who was being  _ so fucking cool _ about everything that was going on, even though Al was sure he was disgusted or embarrassed to be seen with him.

“Alfred, eat your food.” It was an order that came from Germany, not  _ Ludwig _ , but Germany. “It’s wasteful to pick at your meal like this.”

He wanted to argue, he really did, that it was wasteful to let  _ him _ eat such wonderful, unique food, and in front of Germany, no less. Not wanting to make a scene, however, he didn’t bring it up, but ate the food he was paying for. It was delicious, and it felt nice sitting in his belly, warming him from the inside out.

He was quiet until they got to their shared room, each unpacking from the bag they’d sent from the last hostel they’d stayed at. “I’m sorry. I… I've gained some more weight on this trip, and I’m not really sure why. I thought biking and walking around would slim me down or at least keep me at the same weight, not get me fatter. God, I’m sorry.” He sat on the edge of his bed and ran a hand through his hair.

“Don’t be sorry, Alfred, you have nothing to be sorry for. You have been eating good, hearty food!” Ludwig offered an awkward smile and a pat to Alfred’s shoulder. “If you’d like, we can try to stop eating such… filling meals?”

Alfred shrugged. “I dunno. It doesn’t  _ really _ bother me. I guess I just got everyone else in my head, and like I said, Europe isn’t really… built for fatasses.”

It wasn’t the first time Alfred had been self-deprecating around Ludwig, but it was the first time generally unprompted, and he froze. He couldn’t say that Alfred  _ wasn’t  _ a fatass, because he  _ was _ quite large, but his tone was just. He didn’t like it. “That isn't your fault. I will… try to be a little more aware of our surroundings. Tomorrow, we will go to a store, one that  _ does _ cater to larger sizes, and get you some shorts. Does that sound like a good idea?”

Alfred nodded, giving Ludwig an appreciative smile. “I’m sorry we have to do that, dude, I know it sucks, and it’s probably pretty embarrassing-,”

“Do not apologize! We will just have to, as you say, double-time it to our next destination!” Ludwig interrupted, a kind smile on his face.

Alfred recoiled in mock horror, a giggle bubbling its way out of his mouth as he fought a smile. “Not double-time!”

`~`

The rest of the trip was easier. Surrounded by the lush forests and beautiful, clear skies, Alfred was able to forget, at least, a little bit, of what happened. The air was hot, but not sickeningly humid, as it would be back home. They were camping, and had gotten to their campsite earlier in the day, after stopping in the town with a big and tall store.

The campsite was close to a lake, and Alfred had bought a pair of swim trunks for the occasion. He had been lucky to find them, given the usual type of swimwear that was popular in Europe.

The water was freezing but refreshing as he floated on the surface. The sun was a nice contrast to the cool water and he could almost imagine himself falling asleep. Ludwig was swimming laps, until Alfred splashed him to get his attention.

“You don’t have to do laps, dude, we’re the only people here.” Despite that fact, Alfred still had a shirt on, covering the wide expanse of his body. “You can relax.”

“I… I suppose you’re correct…” Truth be told, Ludwig himself wasn’t used to the heavy meals that he had while they ate out and had started losing some muscle definition. Nothing anyone else would notice, of course, but… he worried.

Not that he would end up like Alfred, of course! He would never allow himself to be given so fully to food! It wasn’t in his nature!

Then, he felt a small prick of guilt as he watched Alfred recline back in the water, belly rising up over the water, covered fully by a huge red shirt. It was rude to say that he’d never be like Alfred, like he was some sort of monster. Who knew what the future held? He very well could turn to food for comfort. At least Alfred would understand.

Alfred’s mind was finally at ease. He was still decently full from their lunch, and floating there was the most relaxed he’d been since the summer before, when he had first had his suspicions about Ivan.

He sighed, though, because even this reminded him of Ivan and their plans for a vacation they had always wanted to take together. It had never happened because of their schedules, and because of course, Ivan had preferred to stay at Alfred’s most of the time, but it was something they’d talked about endlessly.

_ “I want to sit under the sun, warm and content, under skies as bright blue as your beautiful eyes.” He had said while laying in bed, purple eyes locked fondly on blue, cold hands cupping Alfred’s face, their legs tangled together underneath the sheets. _

He shuddered and made his way to shore, hearing Ludwig start laps again as soon as his back was turned.

He changed in his tent, letting the stuffy air filter out once he was dressed. He sat at the picnic table near the firepit and closed his eyes, listening to the noise of the forest, and how it differed from the sounds of his own forests back home. It was similar, but not the same. Birds called, animals scurried through the underbrush, but they didn’t sound the same. The little animals had different songs and paces than his own did. It relaxed him, rather than unsettle him.

He was out of his country, with a friend that he didn’t have to worry about betraying him. A friend that understood the pressures of being a country, even if they dealt with their pressures differently.

Alfred felt bad that Ludwig had to be here with him, even if he was having fun. He’d heard whispers, once, from some other countries, that his influence would ruin even the strongest nations, and as Ludwig did laps, Al wondered if Ludwig had heard those same rumors.

He wasn’t  _ stupid _ . He wasn’t. He knew he was fat. He knew he loved greasy, heavy food that wasn’t exactly healthy. He knew all that. He hadn’t pretended like he hadn’t in years, but the rumors still followed him. They’d been easy to forget when Ivan had spent hours building up his confidence and giving him compliment after compliment, kind touch after gentle caress. Now, they were too easy to remember and too easy to believe.

They were easier to believe now, because Ivan had  _ lied _ . He’d lied about so many things, who knew if his attraction had been a lie too? He had probably just liked being the thin one in the relationship. There was no fucking way he had really found Al attractive, not when the rest of the world had such cruel things to say. Fuck it, why was he even thinking about this? He was just upsetting himself, making himself hungry, but no, not for food, for comfort, for those cool hands to cup his belly, long, thick fingers grabbing his overhang and rub his calloused thumbs over the soft, stretch-marked skin and trail their way around to his love handles, grabbing onto them and holding them firmly.

He grabbed an energy bar from his pack and started snacking, closing his eyes as he took in the sounds of the forest. He hated that he was this affected. He shouldn’t be. Who the fuck  _ cared _ if he felt attractive? There were so many more important things to worry about, this was the last thing that should be on his mind, and  _ yet _ .

He was glad he had disposed of the garbage from the energy bar by the time Ludwig had gotten back.

God, he looked good. He’d put his undershirt back on, but it still showed off his muscular frame, fit snugly around his pecs and his trim waist. Alfred couldn’t imagine working his ass to the bone for that kind of Dorito physique, not anymore. He enjoyed food too much and dieting reminded him too much of times when he hadn’t had enough to eat, so he tended to stay away from it. How Ludwig did it, he didn’t know.

No. That wasn’t true. Ludwig did it because he had fitness goals and kept up with them. Alfred did not.

At this moment in time, the only thing that was actually important was getting back to feeling regular so he could fix what the hell was going on with his country. That was the important thing. Losing weight, feeling attractive and putting himself back out there wasn’t important. It didn’t matter.

If it didn’t matter, though, why did he feel so shitty standing next to Ludwig? If it didn’t matter, why did he hate boarding planes without any other Americans on them? If it didn’t matter, why was his boss making such a big deal out of it? Why was he so embarrassed just being himself out in public? Why were things that Ivan had said, seemingly so earnestly, coming back to haunt him now?

He didn’t know, but those questions were too heavy for such a light friendship as the one that existed between him and Ludwig. Luddy was sweet, and did everything he could to help Alfred feel better, but Alfred couldn’t confide in him, couldn’t drop such a load on the poor dude. He was probably still a little annoyed that he’d been volunteered for an impossible task, even if he was nice to Alfred while they were together.

The rest of their trip was easier, and they ended up getting back to Ludwig’s within a couple days. They were sunburnt but happy, Ludwig more fulfilled than he’d been in a long time and Alfred even more confused than he’d been before.

“Alfred?” Ludwig had asked, leaning against his guest bedroom’s door frame, comfortable enough in his own home to do so. “This was very good fun. I… I genuinely hope to do this again.”

He beamed, feeling like, for the first time in a while, that he hadn’t been a burden on his friends’ shoulders. He actually felt like he had actually managed to do the right thing. “Thank you, Ludwig. I hope so too.”


End file.
